It is a common practice for bed patients to wear therapeutic or anti-embolism stockings, particularly when confined to the bed after an operation, to reduce the likelihood of thromboembolism. Also, it may be desirable for bed patients to wear other types of hosiery articles, such as low-cut slipper type socks to aid in maintaining the feet of the patient warm. When a bed patient wearing a hosiery article leaves the bed and attempts to walk on the adjacent floor, the patient may slip and fall causing serious bodily injury. While most patients are warned to put on slippers or shoes when leaving the bed, many patients ignore these instructions and walk on the floor with the hosiery article directly thereagainst.
The desirability of providing some type of anti-slip or non-slip surface on the sole of an anti-embolism stocking has been recognized in U.S. Pat. No. 4,021,860. This patent discloses the use of an inelastic strip or sheet of non-slip material attached to the lower sole portion of the stocking. In accordance with this patent, the non-slip material is fused or adhered to the sole of the stocking while in a stretched condition so that the elasticity of the stocking is not unduly restricted. However, since the strip or sheet of non-slip material is inelastic, the non-slip material does limit the contraction and may somewhat limit the stretchability of the sole portion of the stocking to which it is fused or otherwise attached. Also, the attachment of the inelastic strip or sheet of non-slip material requires a separate operation and thereby adds to the cost of producing the stocking. The non-slip strips make the corresponding portions of the stockings stiff and may also distract from the normally uniform appearance of the stocking.